TL;DR: According to the Thái Nguyên Gazetteer cited by Báo Thái Nguyên in 2022, the new rice festival on the 10th day of the tenth lunar month is one of six Tet occasions of the Tay people in Thái Nguyên. In the family, people cook plain rice and sticky rice from new grain, place a bundle of rice ears on the tray with chicken, pork, day cakes, te cakes and wine to offer to heaven, earth and ancestors. At village scale, the Thái Hải Ethnic Ecological Stilt House Village Conservation Area holds a community ceremony with incense offering, a procession around the cay neu with thanh la, chiec and mo, and Then prayers for peace, and its management states clearly this is a reconstructed activity for cultural preservation combined with tourism.
Scope of the article: which Tay people, recorded in which source?
This article discusses only the Tay people in Thái Nguyên according to records that Báo Thái Nguyên cites from the Thái Nguyên Gazetteer in two 2022 articles. The areas specifically mentioned by the source are Thượng Nung commune and Nghinh Tường commune (former Võ Nhai district, before 7/2025), along with the Thái Hải Ethnic Ecological Stilt House Village Conservation Area (former Thái Nguyên city). The content below does not generalize to the Tay people in Cao Bằng, Lạng Sơn, Tuyên Quang or to the entire Tay ethnic group. The names in the source are Tet com moi, Tết Cơm moi 10-10, cung com moi (lua moi); the cited sources do not use the name Trùng Thập, so the article does not use that name.
According to the Thái Nguyên Gazetteer, in the culture of the Tay ethnic people in Thái Nguyên, the new rice festival is one of 6 important Tet occasions in the year[1]. The 3/11/2022 issue of Báo Thái Nguyên also recalls this list of six Tet occasions and states that Thái Nguyên then had over 150 thousand Tay people, accounting for nearly 12% of the population[2]. These figures are tied to the time of the 2022 article, not current figures.
Six Tet occasions in the year of the Tay people in Thái Nguyên according to the Gazetteer
| Tet occasion | Time | Note in the source |
|---|---|---|
| Nguyen dan | Beginning of the lunar year | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
| Ram thang Gieng | 15th day of the first lunar month | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
| 3-3 tao mo | 3rd day of the third lunar month | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
| 5-5 diet sau bo | 5th day of the fifth lunar month | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
| Ram thang 7 | 15th day of the seventh lunar month | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
| 10-10 cung com moi (lua moi) | 10th day of the tenth lunar month | In the list of 6 important Tet occasions[1][2] |
What is the new rice festival 10-10 understood to be in the source?
The new rice festival is an occasion to give thanks after the year's rice harvest ends. According to the custom recorded by the source, on the exact day of 10-10 lunar, families prepare a colorful tray of rice and cakes made from newly harvested produce to offer thanks to heaven, earth and ancestors[1]. This occasion is also when the Tay people express gratitude to their production tools and to the plants that gave them food and grain, while praying for favorable rain and wind and good crops[1][2].
Mr. Lương Thế Hoành in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune (Võ Nhai), told Báo Thái Nguyên that the new rice offering ritual on 10-10 lunar carries the meaning of thanking heaven and earth and ancestors for granting a bountiful harvest; the family places a bundle of rice ears on the tray with traditional dishes and cakes[2]. In the family, each person is assigned a task, and according to him, that is how children and grandchildren are taught to know how to do it later[2].
Not just one day: the young rice offering in mid-eighth lunar month
Mr. Hoàng Văn Hải, a Tay Then master in Nghinh Tường commune (Võ Nhai), said that in reality the Tay new rice festival has two different days: commonly the offering on 10-10 lunar, and earlier, around mid-eighth lunar month, when young rice grains are still milky, the Tay choose an auspicious day to prepare an offering of new rice[1]. In that young rice offering tray, besides traditional dishes and cakes, young rice grains still milky are especially indispensable for offering to deities and ancestors[1]. According to this Then master, if the 10-10 ritual carries the meaning of thanking heaven and earth and ancestors for a bountiful harvest, the mid-eighth lunar month new rice ritual carries the meaning of praying for a more bountiful crop[1]. This is how the two rituals are distinguished according to a Then master cited by the newspaper, not a general rule for all places.
What is on the family offering tray?
The offering tray on 10-10 in the family of Mr. Lương Thế Hoành in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune, is listed by Báo Thái Nguyên as including chicken meat, pork, day cakes, te cakes, wine, and especially plain rice and sticky rice cooked from newly harvested grain[2]. A bundle of rice ears is placed on the tray with traditional dishes and cakes[2].
| Offering | Recorded by source |
|---|---|
| Plain rice, sticky rice cooked from new grain | Family offering tray in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune[2] |
| Bundle of rice ears placed on the tray | Family offering tray in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune[2] |
| Chicken meat, pork | Family offering tray in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune[2] |
| Day cakes, te cakes | Family offering tray in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune[2] |
| Wine | Family offering tray in Trung Thành hamlet, Thượng Nung commune[2] |
| Young rice grains still milky | New rice offering in mid-eighth lunar month, according to the Then master in Nghinh Tường[1] |
| Five-color sticky rice, chung cakes, khao cakes, puffed rice, roast pig | Community ceremony at Thái Hải Conservation Area[1] |
| Five-color sticky rice, chung cakes, khao cakes, puffed rice, pork | Community ceremony at Thái Hải Conservation Area, 3/11/2022 article[2] |
Thượng Nung commune then had 260 Tay households, living mainly in An Thành, Tân Thành, Lục Thành and Trung Thành hamlets, according to Ms. Lương Thị Mỹ Chải, Chairwoman of the commune People's Committee, cited in Báo Thái Nguyên in 2022[2]. She said Tay households in the commune all maintain the custom of offering on the new rice festival 10-10 to thank heaven and earth and remember ancestors[2]. Mr. Nguyễn Việt Hưng, Head of the Võ Nhai District Ethnic Affairs Office, told the newspaper that the Tay community then accounted for more than 20% of the district population and the new rice festival 10-10 is preserved and maintained by the people[1]. These figures are tied to the time of the two 2022 articles.
Why is the ceremony kept even when people no longer farm?
Báo Thái Nguyên cites cultural experts' assessment that most Tay households in the province still maintain this custom; even for families no longer farming, the new rice festival 10-10 is still maintained as a spiritual ritual, thanking heaven and earth and remembering ancestors[1]. This explanation shows that the spiritual and filial layers of meaning can be separated from the specific farming conditions of each household.
At village scale, how is the ceremony organized?
At the Thái Hải Ethnic Ecological Stilt House Village Conservation Area, the Tay people living there organize the new rice festival on the exact day of 10-10 lunar according to tradition but at village community scale, alongside worship in each family[1][2]. A large number of people gather at the village festival yard to prepare offerings to deities and ancestors with agricultural products and foods prepared by Tay women, such as five-color sticky rice, chung cakes, khao cakes, puffed rice and roast pig[1].
The ritual sequence is described by the source: the village head, also a spiritual master respected by the people, offers incense to deities and ancestors, then leads a group holding thanh la, chiec and mo around a large cay neu to thank heaven, earth and deities and send wishes[1][2]. Alongside the rituals, people also perform ancient Then pieces praying for peace and blessings for all village members and for those attending the new rice festival[1][2]. The 3/11/2022 article adds wishes for a prosperous life and good health for everyone[2].
This is a reconstructed ceremony, not an intact original
Ms. Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hải, Director of the Thái Hải Ethnic Ecological Stilt House Village Conservation Area, told Báo Thái Nguyên: the main purpose of reconstructing the new rice festival is to preserve traditional culture while creating a unique tourism product for the Conservation Area[1]. Ms. Lê Thị Nga, manager of the Conservation Area, also told the newspaper that the unit reconstructs the new rice festival to preserve traditional culture while creating a unique tourism product attracting visitors[2]. Therefore, when reading the description of the community ceremony at Thái Hải, one should remember this is a deliberate activity of a conservation area linked to tourism, not an original record of every Tay village in Thái Nguyên.
Báo Thái Nguyên also records that the new rice festival is a tourism product attracting domestic and international visitors to Thái Hải village in recent years, and cites the opinion of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Đỗ Văn Trụ, Chairman of the Vietnam Cultural Heritage Association, that this ritual is valued and preserved by the Tay from generation to generation, and if replicated could be a distinctive tourism product of Thái Nguyên[1]. This is an individual assessment cited by the newspaper, not a general conclusion.
Legend and distinguishing layers of meaning
The sources cited in this article do not tell a legend about a figure specifically worshipped for the new rice festival in Thái Nguyên. The ritual part in the source is presented as folk custom and belief, directed toward heaven, earth, deities and ancestors in general. Therefore, the article does not assign any specific legendary figure to this festival.
Three layers should be distinguished in what the sources say. The first layer is data on the timing and the list of six Tet occasions, taken from the Thái Nguyên Gazetteer. The second layer is description of practice: family offering trays, community ceremony at Thái Hải. The third layer is the meaning that insiders and interviewees assign to the ritual, such as thanking heaven and earth, remembering ancestors, educating morality and lifestyle for generations, and preserving and promoting traditional cultural beauty[1][2]. This is the understanding of the community and spokespersons, not a scientific proposition requiring verification.
Points to note when researching the new rice festival
First, geographic scope. The source records only the Tay people in Thái Nguyên, with specific points being Thượng Nung commune, Nghinh Tường commune (former Võ Nhai district) and Thái Hải Conservation Area (former Thái Nguyên city). It should not be generalized into a common custom of the entire Tay ethnic group in other provinces.
Second, the number of offering days. According to the Then master in Nghinh Tường cited by the newspaper, there are two milestones: mid-eighth lunar month offering young rice and 10-10 offering new rice, with different meanings[1]. This is information from one Then practitioner in one commune, and should be read as such.
Third, the nature of the ceremony at Thái Hải. This is a community ceremony reconstructed with preservation and tourism purposes, as the conservation area management states clearly[1][2].
Fourth, the time markers of the figures. The numbers on the Tay population in Thái Nguyên, the proportion in Võ Nhai district, and the number of Tay households in Thượng Nung commune are all figures published by Báo Thái Nguyên in 2022, not current figures.
The diversity in naming and organization between families, between family and village, and between the ceremony in Thượng Nung and the ceremony in Thái Hải is what the source records, not a deviation from any model.
